


Shadows in the Night

by Settiai



Category: Call of Cthulhu: Shadow of the Crystal Palace (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, One Shot, Yuletide, Yuletide Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:53:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28310028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Settiai/pseuds/Settiai
Summary: Hana pulled away, breaking the kiss before it came to its natural end.
Relationships: Bentley Badger/Hanako Hayashi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5
Collections: Yuletide 2020





	Shadows in the Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [aqualined (inabstract)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/inabstract/gifts).



Hana pulled away, breaking the kiss before it came to its natural end. "Does your employer know where you are?"

Bentley flinched at her question, not quite meeting her eyes as he let his gaze drift around the hotel room they were in. "Does it matter?" he asked.

"Yes," she said matter-of-factly, her gaze still focused on him. "Yes, it very much does."

He couldn't help but flinch at her tone, not quite meeting her gaze as he focused on keeping his breathing even and his expression as calm as possible. "Why?" he asked. "If he knows where I am and doesn't have a problem with it, why does it matter?"

There was a long pause, significantly more than a moment of silence, before Hana leaned forward and pressed a kiss against his lips. It was barely more than a peck, over and done with before he even realized it had started, but that... well, that said a lot, in the grand scheme of things.

"It matters," she said quietly, "because he knows what lurks in the shadows. As do you."

Bentley closed his eyes for a moment, not quite willing to meet her gaze but at the same time not ready to flee either. He wasn't nearly as surprised as he should have been. Her question wasn't a surprising one, after all, when it all came down to it. She'd seen the dark side of the world and walked out relatively unscathed. If anything, he should be surprised that it had taken her so long to question him on it.

"I owe Mr. Merriweather... quite a bit," Bentley said slowly, still not meeting her gaze. He knew her well enough to know she'd see through him in an instant. "It's not the kind of debt I can just ignore or pretend isn't there. Nor the kind you can either."

There was a long moment of silence. Then there was a thoroughly unladylike snort of amusement.

Bentley's eyes shot open, and his gaze drifted towards the sound despite his best intentions.

Hana was staring at him, a disappointed look on her face visible even in the dim light of the hotel room they were in. He couldn't help but flinch, just a little, when he saw it.

"How is Alexandra?" he asked, trying his best to change the subject and turn their conversation away from him.

Hana shot him a look that made it clear she knew exactly what he was doing, but she didn't argue or call him out on his blatant attempt at changing the subject. She simply sighed before pushing herself up out of the bed and making her way towards the lamp sitting on a nearby table.

Bentley couldn't help but flinch as she lit it, his eyes going a bit wider than they should have as he watched the shadows fill the corners of the room. They were nothing, he knew that, and yet... well, it was hard to tear his eyes away when he'd seen firsthand just what terrors shadows could bring.

"Why are you here?" Hana asked softly, her voice so quiet it was almost inaudible. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to see you, but I'm not a fool. _Why_ are you here?"

It was more than obvious that she suspected an ulterior motive for the decisions he'd made so far that night.

There was a part of Bentley, a large part even, that wanted to argue with Hana. He wanted to tell her without a hint of doubt that he was there of his own accord and no one else had played any role when it came to whatever decisions had led to him showing up at her door. That he had been drawn there by nothing more than his physical urges and perhaps a vague hope of becoming closer with her, in whatever way she was willing to let that happen.

The rest of him wasn't entirely sure _why_ he had showed up there in the first place, or how he had even known where she would be. And he couldn't help but be a bit worried by that fact.

How could he protest her complaints about his employer when he wasn't entirely certain that they weren't valid?

"I don't know," he said finally, meeting her gaze and holding it as best he could. "I'm happy to see you. I'm very happy to see you. But I don't know if it was my decision to come here or not. Not really."

His gaze kept wanting to drift away, to focus on the shadows gathering in the corners of the room, but he didn't. He couldn't. Not when Hana was staring at him, trying her best to read what she could from his facial expressions. Not considering what she had been there for.

Especially when he couldn't give her a definite answer as to whether or not it was entirely on him that he'd shown up at her door.

For a long moment, Hana stared at him, meeting his gaze and looking at him in a way that made him think she might be reading his mind. Then, eventually, she sighed and looked away.

The shadows were even darker than they had been earlier.

"I can't trust you," Hana said finally, her voice gentle. More gentle than he'd been expecting, to be fair, considering she wasn't saying anything he hadn't expected.

"No," he agreed. "I expect you can't. I wouldn't ask you to."

Something flickered cross her face. It wasn't surprise, not really, but it was similar. Whatever it was, it meant he wasn't caught off guard when she suddenly looked at him and sighed.

"You're going to have to choose eventually," Hana said quietly. Softly. Gently, even, like she was saying something she knew he wasn't going to like. "You're going to have to make a decision. Merriweather or me. You can't choose us both."

"Why not?" Bentley shot back. "It's worked so far, hasn't it?"

She stared at him for a long moment before leaning in and pressing a long kiss against his lips. She didn't pull away early this time, letting the kiss come to its natural close before she pulled away.

"You're going to have to pick eventually," she said sadly. Matter-of-factly. Like it was a statement that no one could argue with. "Me or him. You're going to have to decide."

Bentley stared at her for a long moment, taking in the look on her face. He bit his lip. "But not yet?"

"No," she said softly, a hint of sadness still obvious in her tone. "No, not yet."

"Good," he said quietly. Then he leaned in and pressed another kiss against her lips.

He’d have to make a decision eventually. Until then? He’d make due with what he was given.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Twitter. (https://twitter.com/settiai)


End file.
